Ciao and hello again!!!
First off, thanks for all the messages and thoughts you've sent these past couple weeks. It made the initial transistion much, much easier. Getting reacquainted to the langauge, bus system, mosquitos, schedule, etc. were a challenge but I am feeling more comfortable every day! I basically spent the first week sleeping and runing around trying to get my Permit of Stay sorted out, a document foreigners must fill out if they are staying for more than 3 months. However, policies in Italy change all the time and I ended up having to go to a labor union, the police station, and the post office several times to fill it out. Plus it doesn't make it easier when I don't understand most everything they say to me!
Recently the school where I work had 9 new spanish students arrive. I helped pick up 3 of the 5 girls from the airport (2 of whom were joining me at my apartment). Then the next morning I received a call from my boss Stefano saying that either I stay in my single room and live with 4 spanish guys and Ali, my current Algerian roommate, move into the school where 2 double rooms are currently being built, live with a 41 year old Danish woman, or live with 4 other spanish girls my age. I chose to live with other girls. The new apartment is much cleaner, nicer, and my single room overlooks a gorgeous church and the mountains. Pictures to come!!! The girls are fantastic, very clean/organized, and have let me try some traditional spanish food like crochettas (sp?). Our landlord, Romana, has become a second mom/grandmother figure, giving us her home-grown vegetables, baking us a cake, etc. She recently took us to a festa della pizza, a church fundraiser where we ate pizza and listened to live music. The band even played an American song dedicated to the one American in the crowd but I didn't recognize it, haha.
I recently started delving into my job, which starts at around 7 and ends at around 5 or 6. My tasks include the spanish students to Florence and Lucca, organizing transportation info, social events, filing papers, helping with random tasks, etc. We will repeat everything with each new group of students that comes to Centro Studi to work/learn a trade and study Italian language lessons. 3 Danish people are coming tomorrow and then 1 Finnish and 1 more Spanish student/worker in the following weeks. I also take italian class for 3 hours a day this week with the spaniards and then once a week for 4 hours after this week. The people I work with and my professoressa are extremely nice and busy people. The first week, we all went out to a pizzeria one night where I tried anchovies for the first, and last, time :)
I can't wait to start experimenting again with traveling around Italy, tasting different cuisine, meeting new people, the works...keep the updates coming.
Sending all my love...
Julie